Foothill Has Answers Against Eagles, 8-0

The debate at the Southern Section girls’ water polo finals on Saturday was which team would win the Division I championship, top-seeded Santa Margarita or second-seeded Santa Ana Foothill.

By the fourth quarter, however, the only question remaining was how long Santa Margarita would go without a goal.

Foothill answered emphatically with an 8-0 victory at Long Beach Belmont Plaza that secured the Knights’ third consecutive Division I title.

“We were pumped to go out and play,” Foothill junior Brittany Hayes said. “There was definitely a different feeling going into this game.”

Santa Margarita starts one junior national team member and four youth national team members, but they committed 18 turnovers in 30 possessions before they were lifted with 2:46 remaining. The Eagles (25-4) were limited to four shots in the first half, after which Foothill (27-2) held a 4-0 lead.

“Too many distractions,” said Santa Margarita Coach Scott Taylor, who had been concerned about the focus of his players, several of whom planned to rush to their winter formal dance after the game.

Santa Barbara 9, Ventura 1-- The Dons won their fourth Division II title in the last five seasons with a strong defensive effort.

Lauren Boreta had six goals for top-seeded Santa Barbara (25-6). Ventura finishes 24-6.

Bell Gardens 16, North Hollywood Harvard-Westlake 9--The Lancers won an unprecedented fourth consecutive Division III title, their third in a row against the Wolverines, behind the play of seniors Jenny Rueda, Viviana Morales, Patty Cardenas and Alex Lopez.

Rueda, Morales and Cardenas combined for 12 goals and Lopez stopped 10 shots. The top-seeded Lancers (33-1) led Harvard-Westlake (20-8) at halftime, 11-3.

Corona del Mar 11, Placentia El Dorado 6--The Sea Kings (25-7) held El Dorado to one goal through the first three quarters in winning the Division IV title.

El Dorado (15-14) tied the score, 1-1, on Martha Farrell’s goal two minutes into the game, but the unseeded Golden Hawks didn’t score again until the fourth quarter.

Riverside Arlington 8, Riverside North 5--Jennifer D’Anna had four goals to lead top-seeded Arlington (24-7) to its second consecutive Division V title, both against Ivy League rival North (22-7).